Happy birthday,
Will! We had a lovely morning at Cathedral Lake. We again walked to the
top of the ridge before breakfast. We left camp and got water about 9:00.
It was a short hike to Cathedral Pass (no sign), then on to the high point
and down to Long Meadow. We arrived in camp about noon. Now this is the
kind of hiking day I like!

Taking a sun bath

Our well-used campsite

We chose a spot high above the
High Sierra Camp, had black bean hummus on flat bread for lunch, then took
a sunbath. The clouds began building to the East, so we washed up and were
soon in the tent. There was a rain shower from 3-4:00. I read the JMT book
and since we were down to 1 book between us, having read the other 2, we
shared Jane Austen by having Will tear the book as soon as he had read a
section and give it to me. That worked very well. It had only cost $1 used.
Dinner was corn pasta, mashed potatoes and Chocodiles for Will's birthday
cake. Sunset was interesting- there was a glow on the ridges and peaks in
the distance. The sky looks like it's clearing- hope it's nice tomorrow.

Just got into the tent after watching
what was certainly one of the most spectacular sunsets of the trip. Sunset
at Sunrise. Fragments of cloud were shaved from the sky in curls, like aging
bark stained red by a post-storm sunlight. It rained in us most of the day,
but only after we hiked the short distance between Cathedral Lake and Sunrise
high Sierra Camp. We even had time to wash up and do a little sunbathing
before the storm rolled in. For a few ours we sprawled in the tent as the
rain rolled down. The god of thunder beat his chest while in the tent we
munched almonds, we read Sense and Sensibility, we napped. And finally,
just shy of five o'clock, the rain stopped. We crawled forth.

Dinner consisted of garlic mashed potatoes and corn pasta (3/4 cup dried
each plus veggies and cheese)-again, too much food. On top of that there
were Chocodiles. Of course. It was my birthday. There had to be cake involve
somehow. So we're both pretty full right now, but we have about eight
miles of downhill to do tomorrow and it might still rain on us, so I guess
the food will go to good use.

Slowly, the sunlight poured out of the west onto the mountains in the
east. The sky shrugged off the weight of the storm. A chill settled and
we were treated to the aforementioned light show. Now it's bedtime. I'm
32. And I'm happy.